Newbie needing advice

[Niella]

Hi All

I am starting out with bass fishing, been on 3 trips to a local dam near Rustenburg and sew that my rod and reel that i bought for my son is a bit small compared to the other anglers around me and i would like to give his Rod and Reel back to him.

Heres my questions, after being to the local tackle shop and they couldnt answer me, said it's personal taste on what you buy, like i have done this a million times.

1. What length, strenght, weight, stiffnes rod must i look at (for bank angling, i dont own a boat yet)
2. What size reel
3. What strenght line (Also what type of brand is good)
4. What types of lures must i start with ( I am currently using what i got with the starting kit for my son, 2 x lizzards, 2 x fish and 2 x things that look like lizzards)
5. Is it best to buy 2 x rods & reels that you can swop out faster.
6. What is the advantage of short and long, soft medium and stiff rods.

Any other advice would be appreciated.

 

[dondeswart]

Hey Niella



Bass fishing can get very technical very fast, with different rod recommendations for the different ways you can fish for bass, just like all fishing there are rods that are better suited to what you are trying to do. Problem with bass fishing is there are so many different styles of lures and so many different styles of to fish those lures it gets confusing fast.

Start out slow see if you really into it and then you can start buying more as you go along. I fished off the bank for bass with only one rod for a long time before I started accumulating more rods reels ect.

Here is a really good source of bass fishing info http://www.bassresource.com/how-to-fish/ plus the many members here will be happy to answer your questions.

Biggest tip I can give you is to buy something decent the first time around, there are decent setups that wont break the bank (Roughly R1500 to R1800, sounds like bank breaking stuff but for a rod and reel that's a decent price). you have to decide whether you prefer a bait casting reel or a coffee grinder style reel but in my opinion its well worth the effort to learn to fish with a bait caster. Don't worry too much about the size of the rod, as long as the setup (rod and reel) works together, though I wouldn't go with anything shorter than 6ft or longer than 8.5ft.

then there is the infinite variety of lures to choose from, from hard baits, soft baits, spinners, jigs ect. to start out maybe chat to a few of the fisherman that fish your area and ask them what's working in that dam, this will help narrow it down for the first few lures you buy and then build up from there.

as for line choice, each line has its own individual application again but don't get too hung up on that to start with. I will probably get a lot of flack but when I started I just used kingfisher line and never had any problems. when you buy your reel ask the salesman to help you choose something of the right diameter for the reel and rod.

hope this little bit helps, but you could almost write a book on how to start with bass fishing. but most importantly don't get too hung up on the technicalities just fish and learn as you go along. chat to the other guys in the area im sure they will be happy to help out and you might even crack an invite to fish with someone on a boat. And read through the threads here on sealine you will pick up lots.     

 

 

[Niella]

Thanks for the info, tried to open the link but some reason my phone dont want to open it, will start the laptop when kids are in bed. Didnt even think to ask about a baitcaster or coffie grinder setup, will definitly do the baitcaster root. Will speak to the guys at my local dams and see what works for them. Will have to save and extra month to buy the decent rod and reel setup, the wife will get a fit if I fork Out R2000 just on a rod and reel. I did try to ask advice at our local fishing shops but nobody can give me the answers I ask For, they just want to sell you something. If you ask why this and not that, they say they sell more of this than that. Going to Roodepoort the weekend and will stop at the fishing shops there, then I am going to try Florida lake, when the wife is with her mom.

 

[jav123]

Also medium rod for crank baits and medium to heavy for soft baits.

There is tons of tecnical stuff but would say this is the basic for me to start with.

That is what i use.

 

[Niella]

Thanks for the reply.

I will probably start off with plastic's, so the stiffer rod is the beter choice.

Will be Florida lake tomorrow, cant wait. Going with my sons 5 foot medium rod. Hehe, hope it will keep up if I do bring in a 2kilo bass, hope theres still bass there.

 

[jav123]

That is correct.

Because when i used medium heavy on cranks i lost lots of fish.

But Medium rod they stuck like glue!

 

[Paul25]

1 Tip which work good if you have only 1 rod, get snap swivels, easy & fast for changing hard baits.

My recommendation for gear is getting the entry level Shimano, Daiwa , Abu stuff, You can get a really nice shimano Rod for R300 (Scimitar) i would recommend starting with a spinning real, Daiwa's got some great spinning reals for -+300 , i'v got the Daiwa Sweepfire-2000 (R280), cheap little entry level, but its really smooth and you got the reliability from an established brand.

Don't go all out in the start of things.

Tight lines

 

[willem wikkel spies]

have to agree here.
I use the scimitar 6.6 medium heavy paired with a shimano sienna 1000, 45kg line "mono, the cheap stuff"

works for me

 

[willem wikkel spies]

9lb, nie 100lb nie

 

[Niella]

Hi All

Thanks for all your help and info, it help me alot to make up my mind on what to buy. Now i just need to get to a decend tackle shop and get what i want.

Here is another 2 sites i found that can help anyone thats got more questions aswell
http://www.bestbassfishinginfo.com/
http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CFPage?storeId=10151&catalogId=10051&mode=article&objectID=32921

If you dont know what you need, after reading the 3 sites thats on this forum, i think you dont understand where you would like to go with Bass fishing.

I need to  learn how to hunt them now

Happy fishing to you all

 

[Paul25]

Happy Hunting, or should i say catching

Peace

 

[OvaR8ed]

Rod between 6 and 7ft.

I like using a grinder (2000 - 3000 size) with a lite braid (8lb - 12lb) for fishing very light plastics. These are hard to cast with a baitcaster at first, especially into the wind.

Then I always carry a baitcaster setup as well, rigged with a popper, crackbait or a spinner connected to a very small crosslock snap (No swivel, very small hardware).

I usually carry both rods together while I move between spots around the dam. If I see a fish breach or any kind of movement, then the last crank or spinner on the baitcataster is usually ready to be flung in that general direction (Usually unsuccessful, but what can I say, it's nice to be hopeful)

When I reach a new spot I'll start off with the same setup, loud and proud, just to let the fish know it's dinner time with the rattle of a crack or the vibration and shiny flash of a spinner (I believe it gets them in the mood, or at least me)

If the fish saw me coming or are too lazy to chase the flashy baits then I switch to the grinder with a soft plastic and slowly start finessing the cover...

It's nice to have two setups with you, it makes it easier to switch and the stuff weighs next to nothing anyways.

 

[drkobus]

Ek dink mens moet nooit die plaaslike vissers se kennis onderskat nie. Praat met die mense wat die plek ken waar jy hengel. Hulle sal jou gou sê wat werk en wat werk nie. Dan kan jy met drie of vier kunsase wegkom. Nie nodig vir ñ hele winkel, veral as jy nie eers weet wat daar werk of nie werk nie.

 

[willem wikkel spies]

drkobus wrote:

Ek dink mens moet nooit die plaaslike vissers se kennis onderskat nie. Praat met die mense wat die plek ken waar jy hengel. Hulle sal jou gou sê wat werk en wat werk nie. Dan kan jy met drie of vier kunsase wegkom. Nie nodig vir ñ hele winkel, veral as jy nie eers weet wat daar werk of nie werk nie.

stem saam.
ek net drie goed in my kas.
fluke
june bug en n brush hog "natuurlike kluere"

het geller met n wurm, min sukses.
het al spinners gehad "black fury" maar die kleintjies eet hulle